Inspired by the groundbreaking music of Chrome, Kraftwerk, Cabaret Voltaire, Throbbing Gristle, Portion Control, The Legendary Pink Dots, and others, Skinny Puppy experimented with electronic recording techniques and methods. the band composed multi-layered music generally using keyboards, synthesizers, found sounds, drum machines, live percussion, tape splices, samplers, and conventional rock music instruments. Whereas many contemporary remixes and re-edits of songs were created in order to make a song more suitable for dancing or different radio formats, Skinny Puppy approached remixing and re-editing as an artistic process of reinterpreting compositions, often using remixes to push their sound into styles of ambient, dub and techno. Skinny Puppy's often informal, improvisational approach to musical composition is indicated by use of the term brap, coined by them and defined as a verb meaning "to get together, hook up electronic instruments, get high, and record".
Skinny Puppy's first two proper releases, Bites and Remission, fall somewhere between the found-sound chaos of early Cabaret Voltaire and the abrasive, futuristic synthpop of the Units or Crash Course in Science. While the intense synth programming, abstract rhythms, and surreal samples--all Puppy trademarks--are present here, the albums owe as much to new wave as to industrial.
A subsequent EP, Chainsaw, featured a remix of Bites's "Assimilate" that earned the band some attention from club DJs. 1986's Mind: The Perpetual Intercourse earned Skinny Puppy greater attention, as "Dig It" and "Stairs and Flowers" became alternative club and college radio hits; the video for the former was played occasionally on MTV. The album is arguably less club-friendly than its predecessors, as the band continues to refine a claustrophobic, almost surreal sound that buries rhythm and melody. The follow-up, Cleanse, Fold, and Manipulate treads similar territory.
VIVIsectVI was a breakthrough for the band, with "Testure" becoming their biggest club hit to date, and the album itself was received warmly by college radio. The title of the album was a pun intended to associate vivisection with Satanism (ie. the "666 sect"). The album shows SP integrating more political and social themes: "Testure" is an animal rights song; "VX Gas Attack" concerns the use of chemical weapons; "State Aid" promotes sexual abstinence to stop the spread of AIDS/HIV.
Ogre had become very interested in Ministry and Al Jougensen's side projects, and he persuaded the rest of the band to allow Jourgensen to produce Rabies. While "Worlock" (a track Jourgensen didn't produce) remains an industrial club classic, the album was received coolly, as many thought Jourgensen's heavy metal guitar-based signatures did not compliment SP's more complex, intricate sonic sculptures. The band briefly disbanded afterward.
They reformed and returned to their electronic roots with Too Dark Park, a hallucinogenic album that owes as much to psychedelia as industrial music. Two years later, "Last Rights" covered similar territory, culminating in the epic sound sculpture "Download." Although their sound had moved away from industrial dance, these albums expanded the band's audience, and provided the template for many industrial bands of the 1990s.
Following "Last Rights", the band, poised for a major breakthrough in the wake of Nine Inch Nails' commercial success, left their longtime label Nettwerk for American Recordings. Their highly anticipated followup was unfortunately marred by personal tragedy - the death of Dwayne Goettel - and the band's inability to agree on a direction for the record. Numerous producers, including Martyn Atkins (PigFace/Invisible Records founder) and Roli Mosimann (Swans), came and went without success; finally the band regrouped with longtime collaborator Dave "Rave" Ogilvie to finish "The Process". The band expanded their range, working with gothic pop and heavy metal, alongside their familiar electronic textures. While seemingly rushed to completion following Goettel's death (it sounds half-finished in parts), it is an interesting change for the group. Unfortunately American Recordings, tired of waiting for the record, did little to promote it. Skinny Puppy broke up afterward.
With interests in filmmaking, they made a number of music videos, each attempting to further the theme and concept of the composition at hand. Most of these videos received little air play by major music video networks such as MTV (USA) and MuchMusic (Canada) and some were outright banned. For example the video for "Worlock" was universally banned because it is a "non stop gore fest" of clips from various horror movies. Because none of these clips were authorized for usage in the video it has never been commercially available.
Their concerts have been marked by their bizarre and bloody conceptual performance art, which for every concert was planned with the intention of challenging the notions of all who observed. Their music had some acceptance in dance clubs because of its danceable beats, but had little play on commercial radio. Skinny Puppy had little commercial success outside of Canada, but their influence on industrial music is immense.
The band began with the intention of doing something "raw" and "real." Ogre's vocals, one of Skinny Puppy's most recognizable features, are typically roughly growled snarls of half-sentences and fragmented stream of consciousness. Lyrical themes included animal rights, politics, religion, horror, drug abuse, disease, and environmental degradation; these themes were often lyrically and conceptually intertwined. Other core aspects of the Skinny Puppy sound include the mixture of heavy sampling and experimental noise with softer musical styles sometimes approaching synthpop.
Post-punk politics are a recurring theme utilised by Skinny Puppy. Some say the meaning of their name is that their music and lyrics give a view of the world from the eyes of a starving animal. They have long had an interest in animal rights; this is most obvious in their song Testure, which is about vivisection and other animal testing being scientific fraud. During many of their concerts Ogre would take the role of "scientist" and experiment on a stuffed animal. In 1988 they were arrested for their mocked-up vivisections, and found it ironic to be arrested for a parody of what was happening for real across the street from their concert. During their TGWOTR tour, criticism of the Bush regime was a recurring theme, particularly during their performance of VX Gas Attack, a song about atrocities perpetrated by Saddam Hussein, originally released while he was still considered an ally of the United States.
The last two studio albums are points of contention for old school Puppy fans. During the recording of The Process, the band broke up. Even more tragically, Dwayne Rudolph Goettel died, from an apparent heroin overdose at his parent's home, soon afterwards. Some people say that cEvin, Nivek, and Dwayne didn't connect as well on this album as they had earlier because their respective musical interests were diverging at the time, others claim it was the heroin.
Key and Ogre later reunited as Skinny Puppy for a one-off concert in Germany in 2003. Afterwards, they decided Skinny Puppy should continue as an ongoing project. The newly reconstituted Skinny Puppy released The Greater Wrong of the Right in 2004, their first studio album in 8 years, and have been continuing since, constantly evolving their sound.
There have been a number of Skinny Puppy side projects, both before, and after the breakup in 1995. The Tear Garden is a collaboration between cEvin and Edward Ka-Spel (and later most band members) of The Legendary Pink Dots. Other noteable side projects include Download, Hilt, Plateau, Cyberaktif (a collaboration between Key & Goettel and Bill Leeb, a.k.a. Wilhelm Schroeder), Rx (one-off collaboration between Ogre and Martin Atkins), ADuck (Goettel's side project), A CHUD Convention (one-off collaboration with a;GRUHM...), Ogre's contributions to Pigface, Ogre and Mark Walk's band ohGr and solo releases from cEvin Key.
Process 2
Skinny Puppy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
diversification and guilt
Jealousy prejudice
the courage to be themselves... often hated
Aims to make individual freedom
spiritual bounds mental shackles
to heal the wound of separation
to question the unquestioning of the mind
the center of the information war
Progressed
we have progressed
Physically as far as we can go... next stage mental
the process is you
Justification decentralized by conditioned guilt
fear responses
realize
for individuals who wish to acquire
Sigil to the will
give the mind before which is a function of the self to react
and this focusing releases a tremendous energy
As the concourse lowers positive flow of energy
So be it
the process
so be it
Body like mindedness
ageless souls
striving for individual matters
toward collective goals
a guiltless state of self awareness
the process is you
the process is yours
The song "Process 2" by Skinny Puppy is a powerful commentary on the nature of social control and mental conditioning. The lyrics speak of the desire for individual freedom and the courage required to be oneself in a world where uniqueness is often met with hatred and prejudice. The song highlights the need to question the unquestioning nature of the mind and to break free from spiritual and mental shackles that keep people bound to an existence of mass control.
The song goes on to explore the idea of progression, commenting that while humans have made great strides physically, the next stage of evolution lies in mental development. The lyrics suggest that the process of liberation from conditioning involves releasing fear responses and realizing one's own power to shape the world around them. The song encourages individuals to take control of their own minds and to use their will to create positive change in their lives and in society at large.
Overall, the song "Process 2" is a powerful artistic expression of the longing for freedom and individuality in a society that often values conformity above all else. It encourages listeners to embrace their unique powers and to use them to create a more just and free world.
Line by Line Meaning
Alternative - mass control
Skinny Puppy offers an alternative to the mass control system.
Diversification and guilt
People suffer from guilt due to differences, whether cultural, ethnic or other.
Jealousy prejudice
The song highlights the dangers of jealousy, which often breeds prejudice and hatred.
The courage to be themselves... often hated
Individuals have to embrace their true selves and risk being hated for it.
Aims to make individual freedom
Skinny Puppy wants to emphasize individual freedom in every aspect of life.
Spiritual bounds mental shackles
Spiritual limits (or lack thereof) can limit a person's true potential.
To heal the wound of separation
The song wants us to overcome our differences and come together as one.
To question the unquestioning of the mind
The song urges us to challenge what we have been taught to believe blindly without asking questions.
Offers an alternative to mass control
Skinny Puppy presents another way of thinking that does not involve following the herd mindlessly.
The center of the information war
The song highlights the importance of information in today's world and the way it can both unite and divide us.
Progressed
We have made significant progress in the physical world, but we need to evolve mentally as well.
Physically as far as we can go... next stage mental
We have pushed the physical limits but now need to focus on our mental limits to evolve further.
The process is you
The process of evolving is unique to each individual.
Justification decentralized by conditioned guilt
People often use guilt as a way to justify their actions.
Fear responses
The song highlights the dangers of making decisions based purely on fear.
Realize
The song urges listeners to recognize their true potential.
For individuals who wish to acquire
The song is for those who want to continue growing and improving themselves.
Sigil to the will
The song suggests using symbols as a way to focus the mind.
Give the mind before which is a function of the self to react
The song encourages us to give our minds the freedom to react as they will without worrying about the opinions of others.
And this focusing releases a tremendous energy
When we channel our energies and focus on our goals, we can achieve great things.
As the concourse lowers positive flow of energy
When we come together, we can create positive energy that can help change the world.
So be it
The song is a call to action, urging us to take control and create the change we want to see in the world.
The process
The process of self-evolution and growth is ongoing and unique to each individual.
Body like mindedness
The song emphasizes the importance of surrounding oneself with people who share similar values and goals.
Ageless souls
The song suggests that age is just a number and that true growth and evolution are timeless.
Striving for individual matters toward collective goals
We should all strive to achieve our individual goals while also working together to achieve shared goals.
A guiltless state of self awareness
The song encourages us to let go of guilt and become more self-aware.
The process is you
The song emphasizes that the journey of self-evolution is unique to each individual and we are all responsible for our own growth.
Contributed by Mila K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
2nd Tooth
another i was looking for :) u fuckin rule
Louis Cypher
<3